May 10
Events *1291 - Scottish nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England. *1497 - Amerigo Vespucci allegedly leaves Cádiz for his first voyage to the New World. *1503 - Christopher Columbus visits the Cayman Islands and names them Las Tortugas after the numerous sea turtles there. *1534 - Jacques Cartier visits Newfoundland. *1768 - John Wilkes is imprisoned for writing an article for the North Briton severely criticizing King George III. This action provokes rioting in London. *1774 - Louis XVI becomes King of France. *1775 - American Revolutionary War: Fort Ticonderoga is taken by a small force led by Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold. * 1775 - American Revolutionary War: Representatives from the 13 colonies of the United States meet in Philadelphia and raise the Continental Army to defend the new republic. They place it under command of George Washington of Virginia. *1796 - First Coalition: Napoleon I of France wins a decisive victory against Austrian forces at Lodi bridge over the River Adda in Italy. The Austrians lose some 2,000 men. *1801 - First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States. *1824 - National Gallery in London opens to the public. *1837 - Panic of 1837: New York City banks fail, and unemployment reaches record levels. *1857 - Indian Mutiny: In India, the first war of Independence begins. Sepoys revolt against their commanding officers at Meerut. *1864 - American Civil War: Colonel Emory Upton leads a 10-regiment "Attack-in-depth" assault against the Confederate works at The Battle of Spotsylvania, which, though ultimately unsuccessful, would provide the idea for the massive assault against the Bloody Angle on May 12. Upton was wounded slightly but immediately is promoted to Brigadier general. *1865 - American Civil War: Jefferson Davis is captured by Union troops near Irwinville. * 1865 - American Civil War: Union soldiers ambush and mortally wound Confederate raider William Quantrill in Kentucky, who lingers until his death on June 6. *1869 - The First Transcontinental Railroad, linking the eastern and western United States, is completed at Promontory Summit, Utah (not Promontory Point) with the golden spike. *1872 - Victoria Woodhull becomes the first woman nominated for President of the United States. *1877 - Romania declares itself independent from Turkey, following the Senate adoption of Mihail Kogălniceanu's Declaration of Independence. This act was recognized on March 26, 1881 after the end of the Romanian War of Independence. *1908 - Mother's Day is observed for the first time (Andrew's Methodist Church in Grafton, USA). *1922 - The USA annexes the Kingman Reef. *1924 - J. Edgar Hoover is appointed the Director of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, and remains so until his death in 1972. *1926 - planes piloted by Major Harold Geiger and Horace Meek Hickam, students at the Air Corps Tactical School, collided in mid-air at Langley Field, Virginia. Hickam parachuted to safety. *1933 - Censorship: In Germany, the Nazis stage massive public book burnings. *1940 - World War II: The first German bombs of the war fall on England at Chilham and Petham, in Kent. * 1940 - World War II: Germany invades Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. * 1940 - World War II: Winston Churchill is appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. * 1940 - World War II: Invasion of Iceland by the United Kingdom. *1941 - World War II: The House of Commons in London is damaged by the Luftwaffe in an air raid. * 1941 - World War II: Rudolf Hess parachutes into Scotland in order to try and negotiate a peace deal between the United Kingdom and Nazi Germany. *1942 - Thai Phayap Army invaded the Shan States during the Burma Campaign of World War II. *1954 - Bill Haley & His Comets release "Rock Around the Clock", the first rock and roll record to reach number one on the charts. *1960 - The nuclear submarine [[Wikipedia:USS Triton (SSRN-586)|USS Triton]] completes the first underwater circumnavigation of the earth. *1969 - The Battle of Dong Ap Bia begins with an assault on Hill 937. It will ultimately become known as Hamburger Hill. *1970 - The Boston Bruins win their first Stanley Cup since 1941 when Bobby Orr makes an overtime winning goal followed by a leap in the air that would become one of the most famous photographs in ice hockey ("The Goal"). *1979 - The Federated States of Micronesia becomes self-governing. *1981 - François Mitterrand takes office as the first Socialist President of France. *1988 - Michel Rocard becomes Prime Minister of France. *1993 - In Thailand, a fire at the Kader Toy Factory kills 188 workers, mostly young women. *1994 - Nelson Mandela is inaugurated as South Africa's first black president. *1996 - Excel Communications, Inc. becomes the youngest company ever to join the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), trading under the symbol (ECI). *1996 - A "rogue storm" near the summit of Mount Everest kills eight climbers, making this the deadliest day in the mountain's history. Among the dead are experienced climbers Rob Hall and Scott Fischer, both of whom were leading paid expeditions to the summit. *1997 - Pope John Paul II visits Lebanon *2001 - In Ghana, a stampede at a football game kills over 120 spectators. *2002 - FBI agent Robert Hanssen is given a life sentence without the possibility of parole for selling United States secrets to Moscow for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds. *2003 - Record shattering tornado activity during the May 2003 Tornado Outbreak Sequence. *2005 - A hand grenade allegedly thrown by Vladimir Arutinian lands about 65 feet(20 meters) from United States President George W. Bush while he is giving a speech to a crowd in Tbilisi, Georgia, but malfunctions and does not detonate. Births *1265 - Emperor Fushimi of Japan (d. 1317) *1604 - Jean Mairet, French dramatist (d. 1686) *1641 - Dudley North, English economist (d. 1691) *1727 - Anne Robert Turgot, French statesman (d. 1781) *1746 - Gaspard Monge, French mathematician (d. 1818) *1760 - Johann Peter Hebel, German poet (d. 1826) * 1760 - Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, French composer (La Marseillaise) (d. 1836) *1770 - Louis Nicolas Davout, French marshal (d. 1823) *1775 - Antoine Charles Louis Lasalle, French cavalry general (d. 1809) *1788 - Augustin-Jean Fresnel, French physicist (d. 1827) * 1788 - Catherine Pavlovna of Russia, German queen (d. 1819) *1813 - Montgomery Blair, American politician (d. 1883) *1838 - John Wilkes Booth, American actor and assassin of Abraham Lincoln (d. 1865) *1840 - Hadzhi Dimitar, Bulgarian revolutionist (d. 1868) *1841 - James Gordon Bennett Jr., American publisher (d. 1918) *1843 - Benito Pérez Galdós, Spanish novelist (d. 1920) *1847 - Wilhelm Killing, German mathematician (d. 1923) *1866 - Léon Bakst, Russian artist (d. 1924) *1868 - Ed Barrow, American baseball manager (d. 1953) *1872 - Marcel Mauss, French sociologist (d. 1950) *1874 - Moses Schorr, Polish rabbi, senator, historian and orientalist (d. 1941) *1876 - Ivan Cankar, Slovenian writer (d. 1918) *1878 - Gustav Stresemann, Chancellor of Germany, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1929) *1879 - Symon Petlura, Ukrainian statesman (d. 1926) *1886 - Karl Barth, Swiss Protestant theologian (d. 1968) * 1886 - Olaf Stapledon, British author and philosopher (d. 1950) * 1886 - Felix Manalo, Founder and 1st Executive Minister of the Iglesia ni Cristo (d. 1963) *1887 - Mir Ghotbeddin Mohammad Angha, 40th Sufi master of the Oveyssi order (d. 1962) *1888 - Max Steiner, Austrian composer (d. 1971) *1889 - Mae Murray, American actress (d. 1965) *1890 - Alfred Jodl, German general (d. 1946) *1897 - Einar Gerhardsen, Prime minister of Norway (d. 1987) *1898 - Ariel Durant, American historian (d. 1981) *1899 - Fred Astaire, American dancer and actor (d. 1987) * 1899 - Dimitri Tiomkin, Ukrainian-born composer (d. 1979) *1902 - Anatole Litvak, Ukrainian-born film director (d. 1974) * 1902 - David O. Selznick, American film producer (d. 1965) *1903 - Otto Bradfisch, Nazi leader (d. 1994) *1905 - Markos Vamvakaris, Greek rebetiko musician and songwriter (d. 1972) *1909 - Maybelle Carter, American musician (d. 1978) *1911 - Bel Kaufman, American author *1915 - Denis Thatcher, British businessman and husband of Margaret Thatcher *1916 - Milton Babbitt, American composer *1923 - Heydar Aliyev, Ex-President and Leader of Azerbaijan Republic (d. 2003) *1926 - Hugo Banzer, Bolivian dictator (d. 2002) *1927 - Nayantara Sahgal, Indian author *1928 - Arnold Rüütel, Estonian president *1929 - Antonine Maillet, French Canadian novelist and playwright *1930 - Pat Summerall, American football player and broadcaster * 1930 - Scott Muni, American radio DJ (d. 2004) *1933 - Barbara Taylor Bradford, English writer *1934 - Cliff Wilson, Welsh snooker player (d. 1994) * 1934 - Jeanine Basinger, American film scholar *1935 - Larry Williams, American singer and songwriter (d. 1980) *1936 - Gary Owens, American actor and announcer *1937 - Tamara Press, Soviet athlete * 1937 - Jim Hickman, American baseball player *1938 - Marina Vlady, French actress *1940 - Wayne A. Downing, retired United States Army general *1942 - Youssouf Sambo Bâ, Burkinabé politician *1943 - Richard Darman, American economist *1944 - Jim Abrahams, American film director * 1944 - Maureen Lipman, English actress * 1944 - Marie-France Pisier, French actress *1946 - Donovan, Scottish musician * 1946 - Graham Gouldman, British musician and songwriter (10cc) * 1946 - Dave Mason, English musician (Traffic) *1947 - Caroline Cooney, American author * 1947 - Jay Ferguson, American musician and composer *1952 - Kikki Danielsson, Swedish singer *1953 - John Diamond, English journalist (d. 2001) *1955 - Ashoka Jahnavi-Prasad scientist * 1955 - Chris Berman, American sportscaster * 1955 - Mark David Chapman, American assassin of John Lennon *1956 - Vladislav Listyev, Russian television anchor and journalist (d. 1995) *1957 - Sid Vicious, English bassist (The Sex Pistols) (d. 1979) *1958 - Rick Santorum, U.S. Senator * 1958 - Yu Suzuki, Japanese creator of Virtua Fighter series * 1958 - Gaétan Boucher, Canadian speed skater *1959 - Danny Schayes, American basketball player *1960 - Bono, Irish singer (U2) * 1960 - Victoria Rowell, American actress *1961 - Danny Carey, American drummer (Tool, Pigmy Love Circus) *1963 - Lisa Nowak, American astronaut *1965 - Linda Evangelista, Canadian supermodel * 1965 - Darren Matthews, English professional wrestler *1966 - Jonathan Edwards, English athlete *1967 - Scott Brison, Canadian politician * 1967 - Jon Ronson, British journalist and author * 1967 - Young MC, American rapper *1968 - Erik Palladino, American actor *1969 - Dennis Bergkamp, Dutch footballer * 1969 - John Scalzi, American writer *1970 - David Weir, Scottish footballer * 1970 - Perry Blake, Irish singer/songwriter *1971 - Ådne Søndrål, Norwegian speed skater *1972 - Radosław Majdan, Polish footballer *1973 - Craig Mack, American rapper * 1973 - Joshua Eagle, Australian tennis player * 1973 - Aviv Geffen, Israeli singer/songwriter (Blackfield) *1974 - Sylvain Wiltord, French footballer *1975 - Hélio Castroneves, Brazilian race car driver * 1975 - Adam Deadmarsh, American ice hockey player *1976 - Stuart Braithwaite, Scottish musician (Mogwai) * 1976 - Rob Malda, American internet writer/editor (Slashdot) * 1976 - Udo Mechels, Belgian singer * 1976 - Aggeliki Tsiolakoudi, Greek javelin thrower *1977 - Henri Camara, Senegalese footballer * 1977 - Nick Heidfeld, German Formula 1 driver * 1977 - Denise Ho, Hong Kong singer *1978 - Kenan Thompson, American actor *1979 - Lee Hyori, South Korean singer *1981 - Humberto Suazo, Chilean footballer *1982 - Adebayo Akinfenwa, English footballer * 1982 - Katherine Bates, Australian cyclist * 1982 - Jeremy Gable, American playwright * 1982 - Daniel Harris, Australian rules footballer *1983 - Gustav Fridolin, Swedish politician *1984 - Edward Mujica, Venezuelan baseball player *1989 - Lindsey Shaw, American actress * 1989 - Sam Mac, Australian radio and television personality *1993 - Mirai Shida, Japanese actress *2000 - Shyann McClure, American actress and model Deaths *1034 - Mieszko II of Poland (b. 990) *1290 - Duke Rudolph II of Austria (b. 1271) *1424 - Go-Kameyama, Emperor of Japan *1482 - Paolo dal Pozzo Toscanelli, Italian mathematician and astronomer (b. 1397) *1493 - Colin Campbell, Scottish politician *1521 - Sebastian Brant, Alsatian humanist (b. 1457) *1566 - Leonhart Fuchs, German botanist (b. 1501) *1641 - Johan Banér, Swedish soldier (b. 1596) *1657 - Gustaf Horn, Swedish soldier and politician (b. 1592) *1691 - Colonel John Birch, English soldier (b. 1615) *1696 - Jean de La Bruyère, French writer (b. 1645) *1717 - John Hathorne, American magistrate (b. 1641) *1726 - Charles Beauclerk, English soldier (b. 1670) *1733 - Barton Booth, English actor (b. 1681) *1737 - Nakamikado Emperor of Japan (b. 1702) *1774 - King Louis XV of France (b. 1710) *1787 - William Watson, English physician and scientist (b. 1715) *1792 - John Stevens, American delegate to the Continental Congress *1807 - Comte de Rochambeau, French soldier (b. 1725) *1818 - Paul Revere, American patriot (b. 1735) *1829 - Thomas Young, English physician and linguist (b. 1773) *1850 - Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac, French chemist and physicist (b. 1778) *1863 - Stonewall Jackson, American Confederate general (b. 1824) *1868 - Henry Bennett, American politician (b. 1808) *1889 - Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, Russian satirist (b. 1826) *1897 - Andrés Bonifacio, Filipino revolutionary leader (b. 1863) *1904 - Andrei Ryabushkin, Russian painter (b. 1861) *1945 - Richard Glücks, German SS officer (b. 1889) *1950 - Belle da Costa Greene, librarian, bibliographer, archivist (b. 1883) *1955 - Tommy Burns, Canadian boxer (b. 1881) *1955 - John Radecki, Australian stained glass artist (b. 1865) *1960 - Yury Olesha, Russian novelist (b. 1899) *1963 - Gene "Big Daddy" Lipscomb, American football player (b. 1931) *1964 - Mikhail Larionov, Russian painter (b. 1881) *1967 - Lorenzo Bandini, Italian racing driver, (b. 1935) *1968 - Scotty Beckett, American child actor (b. 1929) *1976 - Elias Aslaksen, Leader of Smith's Friends (b. 1888) *1977 - Joan Crawford, American actress (b. 1905) *1982 - Peter Weiss, German writer and artist (b. 1916) *1988 - Shen Congwen, Chinese writer (b. 1902) *1989 - Woody Shaw, American jazz musician (b. 1944) *1990 - Walker Percy, American author (b. 1916) * 1990 - Susan Oliver, American actress (b. 1922) *1992 - Sylvia Syms, American jazz singer (b. 1917) *1994 - John Wayne Gacy, American serial killer (executed) (b. 1942) *1999 - Shel Silverstein, American poet and composer (b. 1930) *2000 - Dédé Fortin, Quebec singer and songwriter (Les Colocs) (b. 1962) * 2000 - Jules Deschênes, Quebec superior court judge (b. 1923) *2001 - Deborah Walley, American actress (b. 1943) *2002 - Lynda Lyon Block, convicted murderer (b. 1948) * 2002 - Yves Robert, French actor, screenwriter and director (b. 1920) *2003 - Milan Vukcevich, Yugoslavian chemist and chess problem composer (b. 1937) *2005 - David Wayne, American singer (Metal Church) (b. 1958) *2006 - Raizo Matsuno, Japanese politician (b. 1917) * 2006 - A. M. Rosenthal, American newspaper editor (b. 1922) * 2006 - Soraya, Colombian-American singer (b. 1969) * 2006 - Val Guest, British film director (b. 1911) Holidays and observances *Astronomy Day in the United States. *Birds' and Trees' Day in Hungary *Buddha's Birthday in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and South Korea. *Celebration of the Clandestine Retreat of Ma'at and Ra in Ancient Egypt. *Confederate Memorial Day in North Carolina and South Carolina. *Constitution Day in the Federated States of Micronesia. *Inauguration Day in South Africa. *Mania in Ancient Rome. *The marriage of Shiva to Meenakshi in Madurai, India *Mother's Day in much of South America, El Salvador, India, Mexico, Oman, Pakistan, and Qatar. *Native American Day among Indigenous North Americans. *Parent's Day in South Korea. *The first possible day on which Pentecost may fall. * The Ploughing Ceremony in Thailand. *Tin Hau's Day in China. *Start of Tori no Mawari/Bird Week in Japan. *Tritopatores in Ancient Greece. Liturgical feasts Saints in the Roman Catholic Church: * Saint Alphius * Saint Antoninus of Florence (died 1459) * Saint Aurelian * Saint Calepodius * Saint Cataldus * Saint Comgall * Saint Dioscorides * Blessed Father Damien of Molokai * Saints Gordian and Epimachus * Saint Isidore the Laborer * Saint John of Avila * Saint Job * Saint Quaratus and Quintus * Saint Peter Van * Saint William of Pontoise * Saint Solange External links * BBC: On This Day * * On This Day in Canada ---- Category:May